Rail anchor

ABSTRACT

A rail anchor includes a hook section at one end having spaced twin jaws elastically engaging one flange of a rail base while a shoulder on the opposite heel section engages the sidewall of the other rail base flange. The body of the anchor is of channel construction and includes a pair of inner wall segments separated by a medial corrugation extending the length of the body.

Unite States Patent 1191 Cantwell Oct. 2, 1973 1541 RAllL ANCHOR 3,044,709 7/1902 Liebcnthal 238/327 2l6l484 6l9 l75| Inventor: LaurenceW.Cantwell,Hmsdale, l 39 Preston 238/327 R [I]. Primary Examiner-Gerald M. Forlenza [731 Ass1gneez Portec,Inc.,Oal Brook, lll. Asst-8mm Examiner Richard Bertsch 2 Filed; Nov. 23 1971 Att0rney-Emory L. GlOff Ct 3|. 211 Appl. No.1 201,367

[57] ABSTRACT [52] [1.8. Cl. 238/327 A rail anchor includes a hook section at one end having [51] Int. Cl E0lb 13/02 spaced twin jaws elastically engaging one flange of a [58] Field of Search 238/315, 315 A, 316, rail base while a shoulder on the opposite heel section 238/318, 321-330 engages the sidewall of the other rail base flange The body of the anchor is of channel construction and in- [56] References Cited cludes a pair of inner wall segments separated by a me- UNITED STATES PATENTS dial corrugation extending the length of the body.

3,100,081 8/1963 Gallagher 238/327 R 6 Claims 6 Drawing Figures 3,102,690 9/1963 Fee 1,609,287 l2/l926 Blair 238/324 PAIENTEU 2 I973 FIG. 3.

FIG. 2.

FIG. 6.

INVENTOR LAURENCE W. CANTWELL ATTORNEY RAIL ANCHOR This invention relates generally to railway rail anchors, and more particularly, to tie-bearing rail anchors fabricated from channel-shaped metal stock and ineluding a hook at one end adapted to be driven into expanded gripping engagement with the base portion of a rail and provided also with a relatively wide depending side wall adapted to abut against an adjacent cross tie in order to resist longitudinal creeping movement of the rail. By the use of a corrugated section, the section modulus is increased so that a thinner metal may be used with a resultant improved heat treatment.

The hook portion of the subject type of rail anchor includes a pair of spaced apart clamping or jaw elements which must be particularly formed to fit the progressively increasing thickness of a conventional rail base flange at a prescribed location in order to exert a strong grip thereon with limited resiliency. Numerous efforts have been made in the past to provide improved hook type rail anchors and several factors enter into consideration when designing such an anchor. Quite obviously, the amount of material required to fabricate a suitable anchor is of paramount concern, not only from the initial cost standpoint leading to the fabrication of the anchor, but also in consideration of the subsequent shipping cost in connection with delivery of the completed anchor to the customer. Thus, there is a constant struggle between the selection of the amount or weight of metal as utilized in each anchor and the specific fabrication thereof, in order to arrive at the most suitable construction lending itself to a rail anchor having the maximum clamping force when applied to a rail base.

By the present invention, an improved rail anchor is presented which is of unitary construction and is formed from metal stock initially fabricated to provide a corrugated channel stock when viewed in cross section. The completed anchor is achieved by fabricating this corrugated stock in order to provide a curved hook portion having a pair of spaced apart jaw sections at one end and a terminal heel section provided with a shoulder at the other end.

Accordingly, one of the primary objects of the present invention is to provide an improved rail anchor fabricated from a corrugated channel metal stock.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved rail anchor of the hook type having twin spaced apart jaws at one end and a terminal heel section at the other end provided with an upstanding shoulder.

A further object of the present invention is to provide an improved rail anchor fabricated of corrugated metal stock having a pair of spaced apart coplanar inner wall segments extending throughout the periphery of the rail anchor juxtaposed the rail base.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide an improved rail anchor of the hook type having spaced apart rail base engaging jaws, each of which includes a pair of laterally spaced co-planar bearing surfaces elastically engageable with opposite surfaces of a rail base flange.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved rail anchor of the hook type including an under-rail portion provided with longitudinally spaced apart bearing surfaces, each of which further includes twin spaced apart co-planar rail engaging surfaces.

With these and other objects in view which will more readily appear as the nature of the invention is better understood, the invention consists in the novel construction, combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter more fully described, illustrated and claimed.

A preferred and practical embodiment of the present invention is shown in the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of the rail anchor according to the present invention as applied to the base portion of a railroad rail.

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the rail anchor shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is an end elevation of the rail anchor of FIG. 1 as viewed from the hook portion thereof.

FIG. 4 is a transverse sectional view along the line 404 of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a transverse sectional view along the line 55 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view along the line 66 of FIG. 2.

Similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several view of the drawing.

Referring now to the drawing, particularly FIG. 1, the present invention will be seen to comprise a rail anchor, generally designated A, including a hook I at one end having a curved end section 2 terminating in an upper jaw 3 and a lower jaw 4. Extending from the lower jaw 4 is a dropped center section 5 joined to an outermost terminal heel section 6.

An important feature of the present invention includes the construction of the very stock material from which the subject rail anchor is fabricated. As will be seen most clearly in FIGS. 2-5, the body of the rail anchor A is of a corrugated generally W-shaped channel construction and includes an inner wall 7 provided with twin spaced apart co-planar inner wall segments 8-8 separated by means of the outwardly extending deformation 9 which forms a valley, groove, or corrugation extending substantially the entire length of the rail anchor body. The outer lateral edges of each of the inner wall segments 8-8 are each joined to a side wall 10 which extends angularly from the inner wall 7 to an outer edge 11. The plane of the side walls 10 may project normal to the plane of the inner wall 7; however, it has been found that fabrication is facilitated and additional gripping action is achieved by disposing these side walls at a slight outwardly directed inclination within the range of 24 to the inner wall 7. Increased stability is achieved, without a loss of gripping action, by providing the side walls 10 with a height that is less than the width of the body inner wall 7, as shown most clearly in FIGS. 4 and 5, while the height of the groove or corrugation 9 is preferably not less than one-third the height of the side walls. Each of the jaws 3 and 4 terminates in twin bearing surfaces 12 and 13, respectively, which surfaces, it will be understood, are in effect portions of the inner wall segments 8 located in these areas. Enclosed within the confines of the hook I is a large cavity which, when the anchor is installed as shown in FIG. 1, provides a top hook cavity 14 and a bottom hook cavity 15. Inasmuch as the stock forming the body of the rail anchor is of a substantially constant cross section throughout its extent, it will be appreciated that the existence of the cavities l4 and 15 is necessary since the hook I must be fabricated with a sufficient radius to provide the desired gripping action between the opposed twin bearing surfaces 12 and 13 of the two spaced apart jaws. As is well known to those skilled in the art, the location of this gripping force is of importance when considering the bearing force of the side wall as it engages the cross tie (not shown). By the present arrangement, it will be seen that a substantial amount of material of the curved end section 2 and lower jaw 4 is located outside of the gripping area of the two jaws in order to more nearly balance the force of the jaws upon the rail base flange and the bear ing force of the lower portion of the rail anchor against the adjacent cross tie.

The body of the anchor between the dropped center section 5 and the distal portion of the heel section 6 comprises a horizontal section including the inner wall 7 wherein its two spaced apart inner wall segments 8-8 are disposed in a co-planar relationship substantially parallel to the plane of the bearing surfaces 13 of the lowerjaw 4. The thus-described segments 88 will be seen to define spaced heel section platforms l6-16 adapted to engage the undersurface of the rail base flange F for a distance which is preferably at least onehalf the width of one rail base flange F. Projecting upwardly from the plane of the heel section platforms 16 are a pair of elevated shoulders l7-17, each of which includes a vertical stop edge 18 disposed normal to the plane of the adjacent platform 16 and adapted to engage the lateral surface of the juxtaposed rail base flange side wall 19, as will be seen most clearly in FIG. 1 of the drawing.

The application of the aforedescribed rail anchor will be understood by those skilled in this art. The anchor may be manually applied by striking the curved end section 2 with a mawl or otherwise applied by means of automatic machinery. In either instance, the lower portion of the body is guided beneath the undersurface of the rail base flange F with the spaced apart jaws 3 and 4 being directed upon opposite sides of the nearest rail base flange. As the bearing surfaces 12 and 13 of the two jaws begin to resiliently engage the rail base, an increasing amount of force will be required to continue driving the anchor into position, until such time as the shoulder 17 clears the bottom of the rail base, and snaps behind the side wall 19 into the position shown in FIG. 1.

I claim:

1. A rail anchor comprising a unitary body, channelshaped in cross section and of substantially similar cross-sectional configuration from one end thereof to the other end, said body including a hook having a curved end section at one end, a heel section at the opposite end of said body, said hook bounded by an upper jaw and a lower jaw each having a bearing surface adapted to clampingly engage the top and bottom surfaces of a first rail base flange at substantially vertically opposed points, said upper and lower jaw spaced well inwardly of said curved end section and separated therefrom by a top hook cavity and bottom hook cavity, respectively, said body including a dropped center section intermediate said heel section and said lower jaw and substantially medially beneath the web of the rail, said anchor body including an inner wall juxtaposed the rail base and comprising a pair of co-planar inner wall segments separated by a medially disposed longitudinally extending groove, said inner wall segments forming said bearing surface in the area of said upper and lower jaws, a sidewall angularly extending from the lateral edge of each said inner wall segment, twin platforms on said heel section formed by said inner wall segments and substantially co-planar with said lower jaw bearing surfaces, a shoulder projecting upwardly from the plane of said platforms adjacent the distal portion of said heel section and engageable with the sidewall of a second rail base flange when said jaws elastically engage the opposite first rail base flange, and said platforms extending longitudinally a distance sufficient to engage the undersurface of at least one-half the juxtaposed second rail base flange.

2. A rail anchor according to claim 1 including two said shoulders projecting from said platforms.

3. A rail anchor according to claim 1 wherein, said body sidewalls are disposed between 24 from a line normal to said innerwall.

4. A rail anchor according to claim 1 wherein, the height of said sidewalls is less than the width of said inner wall.

5. A rail anchor according to claim 1 wherein, the height of said groove is no less than l/3 the height of said sidewalls.

6. A rail anchor according to claim 1 wherein, the channel-shaped body provides a corrugated W- shaped section. 

1. A rail anchor comprising a unitary body, channel-shaped in cross section and of substantially similar cross-sectional configuration from one end thereof to the other end, said body including a hook having a curved end section at one end, a heel section at the opposite end of said body, said hook bounded by an upper jaw and a lower jaw each having a bearing surface adapted to clampingly engage the top and bottom surfaces of a first rail base flange at substantially vertically opposed points, said upper and lower jaw spaced well inwardly of said curved end section and separated therefrom by a top hook cavity and bottom hook cavity, respectively, said body including a dropped center section intermediate said heel section and said lower jaw and substantially medially beneath the web of the rail, said anchor body including an inner wall juxtaposed the rail base and comprising a pair of co-planar inner wall segments separated by a medially disposed longitudinally extending groove, said inner wall segments forming said bearing surface in the area of said upper and lower jaws, a sidewall angularly extending from the lateral edge of each said inner wall segment, twin platforms on said heel section formed by said inner wall segments and substantially co-planar with said lower jaw bearing surfaces, a shoulder projecting upwardly from the plane of said platforms adjacent the distal portion of said heel section and engageable with the sidewall of a second rail base flange when said jaws elastically engage the opposite first rail base flange, and said platforms extending longitudinally a distance sufficient to engage the undersurface of at least one-half the juxtaposed second rail base flange.
 2. A rail anchor according to claim 1 including two said shoulders projecting from said platforms.
 3. A rail anchor according to claim 1 wherein, said body sidewalls are disposed between 2*-4* from a line normal to said innerwall.
 4. A rail anchor according to claim 1 wherein, the height of said sidewalls is less than the width of said inner wall.
 5. A rail anchor according to claim 1 wherein, the height of said groove is no less than 1/3 the height of said sidewalls.
 6. A rail anchor according to claim 1 wherein, the channel-shaped body provides a corrugated ''''W''''-shaped section. 